Tea-time

We interrupt this cleaning day to bring you 'Tea-time, with Tess and Grace'. Two princesses with lightly caffeinated sippable poofy cups on their minds.

Made it into PICU

Hayleigh Joy, the daughter of a Fictionville E.R. nurse, made it through the surgery well. She is now in the PICU. So far. so good. Keep the prayers up. hayleighsheart.blogspot.com. I know I'd be a nervous wreck right about this time, especially if I were without the calming presence and knowledge of Christ. Thankfully, this family has both.

I have been preparing all morning for an interview I will be having at 2pm for another department at Fictionville. Rather than race across town at the last minute to get a haircut and cut it close (no PUN intended), I am going to simply prepare myself mentally while taking my time. Prayers over this decision would be more than welcomed also.

Unless I get a dramatic 'thumbs-up' on the spot, I will let you all know when I know. -It's all up to where the Lord wants me to serve.

Till then,

-C

Hayleigh Joy Alber

Todays post is all about Hayleigh.

As you read this, Hayleigh is undergoing open heart surgery right now in Detroit. Hayleigh is 1 year old. She's the daughter of a wonderful Christian brother (Eric) that I work with at Fictionville E.R.

Please lift them all up in your prayers today. ..including the surgeons, nurses, and staff involved in her surgery. The latest update I had seen is that she is now on the bypass machine. You can check it out and be updated as Eric updates Hayleighs blog at: http://hayleighsheart.blogspot.com/

Semper Fidelis,

-C

Don't get caught up in the hype

I've never known James Dobson to have an ulterior motive. I have known him to be a straight shooter and Godly man, which is why it dumbfounds me that Obama would say something so ridicules. Read, investigate, and decide for yourselves... -C

"Barack Obama said Tuesday that evangelical leader James Dobson was "making
stuff up" when he accused the presumed Democratic presidential nominee of
distorting the Bible.

Dobson used his Focus on the Family radio program
to highlight excerpts of a speech Obama gave in June 2006 to the liberal
Christian group Call to Renewal.

Speaking to reporters on his campaign plane before landing
in Los Angeles, Obama said the speech made the argument that people of faith,
like himself, "try to translate some of our concerns in a universal language so
that we can have an open and vigorous debate rather than having religion divide
us."

Obama added, "I think you'll see that he was just making stuff up,
maybe for his own purposes."

In his program, Dobson focused on examples
Obama cited in asking which Biblical passages should guide public policy. For
instance, Obama said Leviticus suggests slavery is OK and eating shellfish is an
abomination. Obama also cited Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, "a passage that is so
radical that it's doubtful that our own Defense Department would survive its
application."

"Folks haven't been reading their Bibles," Obama said in
the speech.

"I think he's deliberately distorting the traditional
understanding of the Bible to fit his own worldview, his own confused theology,"
Dobson said.

Asked about Dobson's assessment, Obama said "somebody would
be pretty hard-pressed to make that argument" that he was distorting the Bible.

Obama supporters also responded to Dobson.

The Rev. Kirbyjon
Caldwell, a Methodist pastor from Texas and longtime supporter of President Bush
who has endorsed Obama, said Tuesday he belongs to a group of religious leaders
who, working independently of Obama's campaign, launched a Web site to counter
Dobson at http://www.jamesdobsondoesntspeakforme.com. The site highlights
statements from Obama and Dobson and asks visitors to compare them.

Caldwell said he has great respect for Dobson's advocacy for families,
but said the criticism of Obama was "a bit over the top" and "crossed the line."

"There has been a call for a higher level of politics and politicking,"
Caldwell said. "So to attack at this level is inappropriate and I think
unacceptable and we at least want to hold everybody accountable."

Tom Minnery, a senior vice president at Focus on the Family, responded: "Without
question, Dr. Dobson is speaking for millions of evangelicals because his
understanding of the Bible is thoroughly evangelical."

New Responsibilities

ZZzzzzz'sville

So there's not been much to post about lately. I know. We've been cheesing' it. Work, sleep, work, sleep. -There hasn't even been much to photograph.. Well, some of that had changed yesterday when T' videotaped Grace attempting to feed Noah. -She's a very good big sister. I'll post the video later Sunday afternoon for all to see.

The radio system pet-project I had been working on when T' was in Charlotte N.C.? (GMRS two way radios) Today, I tasted vindication. On the way into work I was able to speak to Tess roughly 18 miles out. (22 mile drive, 16-18 as the crow flies). Whoa. How cool is that!? A little tweaking here-and-there, and it will work out just fine. (Yes. I know. I'm a geek, but I love to overcome challenges. It's the jarhead in me.)

Enjoy your day of rest wherever you are.
Semper Fi,
-C

Sunshine, work, and toilets

Since we've been back, it's been: unpack, clean. Unpack, clean. And of course I am paying penance for taking my vacation time by working the next seven days straight..

On the home front, Grace has been potty training. We've had two days of consistency on her part. I never thought I'd ever be excited about such a thing, but I (we) am (are). A big shout out to Joan for all of the twizler licorice pieces as 'tinkle-treats'. -You'd think Grace won the lottery after she goes. I see a light at the end of the diaper tunnel.

C

Home sweet HOME!

12 hours is not an accurate estimate for the Charlotte to A-town commute ...At least not for the 'Hilton's'. -For 'special' people like us, it is more like, 15 hours and some change.

-No difficulties or issues; We made it home this morning; tired, but excited to be back (we arrived to no more Michigan humidity or rain!). -It was a fun drive except for the night driving.

Another HiltonLife adventure under the kids' belt!
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West Virginia fuel station:

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Final mileage tally:

Stories and pictures to come later. We have to head to the airport to return the Hertz mini-van.

Blessings to all, and it's good to be back,

We are the Mini-van Posse

We should be loaded up and hitting the road to make the 'over-the-mountains-and-through-the woods' drive home in about an hour (11:52am Sunday). It's a 12-hour drive.. We'll see if we can make the entire trip in one non-stop shot. (Yeee Haw !!)

Be blessed, and have a safe and fun Fathers Day, Dad!

Love,
C,T,G, and N

Five hours to liftoff

So what am I doing in my excitement? Cleaning.. Doing laundry.. Putting away dishes.. and then packing.

This will probably be the last post for this week while we're gone. Some friends will be staying here taking care of the ranch, and I'm more than likely leaving my laptop behind. If the chance arises, perhaps I'll put up a few pictures here and there, but I am going to do my best to force myself to stay off any computers, stay away from emails, ect. After all, it's vacation, right?

Till then,

To be in the 'Know'.

Grace's Caption:

" Even though I don't know it, my dad is flying down to join us tommorrow!"

Dad's Thoughts:

" I miss 'em".

See you tomorrow night Hilton Tribe!

World Review Superpost Sunday

When people begin to blame rising food prices in third world countries on America's thirst for a petroleum substitute (corn based ethanol) we need to look deeper into the picture.

Rice (not 'Condoliza') is the number one supplier of nutrition to third world countries. Not corn. Corn based ethanol for fuel (E85) accounts for less than 1% of domestic corn produced.. (You'll find that food costs have risen considerably more than that measly 1%, primarily due to the the devaluation of the U.S. Dollar on the global markets, and an American recession, not-to-mention various other global economic factors.. - - Around the HiltonLife Ranch, We'll keep driving our 'corn-burner' without guilt. Go green by going yellow.

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Speaking of rising costs in relation to fuel; the associated Press reported Friday that the U.S Energy secretary yesterday stated as fact:

"Production (oil) has stalled since 2005 at 85 million barrels a day, while economic growth — particularly in China and India — has pushed demand ever higher, Bodman said before a meeting of ministers from the U.S., Japan, South Korea, India and China."

Amazing.

-Basic economics.. Scarcity and demand. (Accepting of course petrol being inflated and actively manipulated by the industry.)

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Which leads me into the acceptance speech topic of choice from the political celeb of the week: Barack-'you-da-man'-Obama (..Do a web search and listen to it word for word with emphasis on focusing on his voice tone and influx. It's interesting to say the least.) Quoting:

"..What you won't hear from this campaign or this party is the kind of politics that uses 'religion as a wedge', and patriotism as a bludgeon - that sees our opponents not as competitors to challenge, but enemies to demonize. Because we may call ourselves Democrats and Republicans, but we are Americans first. We are always Americans first." -Barach Obama, 2008 Democratic Nomination victory speech.

(As a Christian living in a country formed by forefathers that believed in the healthy fear of God's justice and displayed favor, I have to ask the retorical question: . . Whatever happened to; 'Believers first?')

When I watch the Barack Obama speech, it sounds like a kind of 'universal/communal/Utopian kind of place'. ('-Remember the; "Can't we all just get along?') -And truly, I can appreciate something like that; but at the same time, it seems to say, "We're washing away all religious differences and beliefs to substitute them with carefree, all accepting, LOVE! We are all universally the same.

Compare those statements with the scripture.. (Old, OR New Testament.) Do the math.

(That kind of weirds me out)

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Obama states to the AIPAC and Israel hopes:

". . . And, Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided."

By his remarks about Jerusalem to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Obama) received a most enthusiastic response. Mr. Diament of the AIPAC said, “My organization and constituents were very excited when we heard him on Wednesday making what seemed to our ears to be a very clear and declarative statement, something different from what he had said before, but which he is now circling back towards in his clarifying statements yesterday and today.”

In the Middle East, however, reaction to Mr. Obama’s speech, which was broadcast live on several Arab-language television stations, was immediate, and strongly negative. Some of the sharpest reaction came from Palestinian leaders who had previously expressed hope that Mr. Obama would break with what they saw as a pattern of American favoritism toward Israel.
“This statement is totally rejected,” said Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority. He added, “We will not accept a Palestinian state without having Jerusalem as the capital.”

Dennis Ross, a diplomat who was involved in Middle East peace talks for the administrations of the first President Bush and President Bill Clinton, expressed unique views. Mr. Ross said he saw “no calibration” in Mr. Obama’s stance, which he said “does not contradict in any way, shape or form what our policy has historically been.”

And leaders of some Jewish groups remain unconvinced. . .
“With Barack Obama and his campaign watering down his statement for an undivided Jerusalem,” said Morton A. Klein, national president of the Zionist Organization of America, “one must question whether his initial remark was simply meant to mislead Jewish voters and Israel supporters by not stating his true beliefs on this issue.”

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I came across this interesting piece while doing my weekly world news download:

Letter Re: An Oil Trader's Observations on the Market Implications of War with Iraq

im, I've been trading crude oil for a few decades now, and in the last two sessions I've seen trading like I haven't seen since Desert Storm, large unexplained up moves, $5.50 yesterday (6/5) and as I type this the market opened $6.00 higher. For a huge liquid market such as Crude Oil, these are large moves.I went to the Jerusalem Post to search out any open source tidbits/indicators and I stumbled upon this article.To buttress this, Gold is up $22 and Silver up 35 cents.The first piece of Israeli ordnance to hit Iranian soil could cause a hyper spike of anywhere from $20 to $70 in Crude in a single day of trading the day after the attack, which in my estimation is coming sooner rather than later.May God bless you and your family. Pray for Israel, in Jesus' love, - N. in Chicago

JWR Replies: I'm sure you've seen the headlines: Crude oil was up over $8 in one day, on Friday, setting a record at $137 per barrel.On April 18, 2006, I warned readers to start keeping their gas, diesel, home heating oil, and propane tanks filled, in part by means of "keep full" contracts. That was back when regular gas was around $2.29 per gallon. I'll say it again: "Fill your storage tanks, folks!" If you didn't take my advice at that time, then please do so now."

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Interesting eh?

Even if you don't feel the need to follow in the footsteps of the above mentioned possible high anxiety individual, if you fill your tank today, it's probably a good safe bet that your saving yourself some grief, and/or dollars down the road..

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Essentially and summarily, republican, independent, Democrat, or even political atheist ; it seems wise to approach our upcoming national and global interests, conditions, events, and promises, with deep intellectual and spiritual led scrutiny.

Through it all, my personal confidence is this: We are God's friend, and though we may not know His mind, he will reveal it all, in time..

These two simple virtues sung in praise by, Fred Hammond and Israel and the New Breed reverberate "Our steps are ordered by God."

-He calls us "Friend". -How awesomely humbling and exciting! Our God. . . The God Almighty. God of the first, (and in my case) the second, and third, and fourth and twenty-ninth chance... calls us friend. -The God who called us out of darkness. The God who calls us to join him. To worship. Calls, "Sit with me awhile." You are more than just a servant. Servants don't know what the Master is doing. He has so many things to do through you. Hang on.

Too much FUN!

I'm not sure I can compete with all this fun.. I'll be joining the family Monday night. Until then, it's fun at fictionville.

-C

The Wisdom of Zach

While the family is out of town, I am finishing my gadget projects throughout the house. Zachariah, our friends five-year-old came over to help me as I was cutting/sanding/and drilling the antenna fir strips in the garage:

Z: What's this for Mr. Carl? (x10's)

C: (Smiling while providing 10 different explanations for various tools around the garage)

Z: Why didn't you use this? (pointing to chainsaw)

C: Well Zach, that would cause quite a mess. I'll use the miter box instead..

Z: What color is the marble that's in there? (Referring to the spray paint can he is holding.)

C: Oh, probably red, or blue.. right now it's just covered in paint.

Z: Can we get it out?

C: After I finish this project we'll work on getting it out for you. I'll make sure that your around. (Knowing that pounding a screwdriver through a paint can with a hammer and prying it apart with a pair of pliers in front of a 5-year-old probably isn't a good lesson to be teaching right now.)

Z: Mr. Carl. Can Grace come outside?

C: Well bud, she's not home. She's with Ms. Tess and Noah in North Carolina..

Z: Oh. I remember. I just wanted to see if she wanted to play.

C: Yep. She's gotten alot bigger hasn't she? -She's not a little baby anymore, huh?

Z: Yeah. She's okay now.

Z: I heard you are going to put an antenna on the car..

C: Yeah. On my little white one; but not Ms. Tess' car.

Z: Why not? Your the Daddy. You can do anything you want..

C: I suppose sometimes, but I don't think Ms. Tess would like me to do that.

Z: Mr. Carl. Your lucky that your home alone. That's got to be fun to have the whole house to yourself and still be able to come over to our house and have fun.

C: It's okay, but you are right. I am very lucky to be able to have Friends like you guys.

Z: Yeah. Your Grace and Noah's Daddy, and our neighbor.. You can do anything you want!

C: Almost buddy. Almost.

Z: Is the marble the same color as the paint can?

Z: (Before I have a chance to answer the previous question) ..Mr. Carl. I wish the world was made up of candy and bibles.

C: Why is that Zach?

Z: Because then I could eat everything, and read. I could read all good stories..

C: I never thought of that Zach. Your right. That would be cool

And in this corner!

Sen. Barack Obama, the first-term Illinois senator who was virtually unknown on the national stage four years ago, sealed the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday.

A defeated Hillary Rodham Clinton maneuvered for the vice presidential spot on his fall ticket.

She expressed it in a conference call with her state's congressional delegation after Rep. Nydia Velazquez, predicted Obama would have great difficulty winning the support of Hispanics and other voting blocs unless the former first lady was on the ticket.

"I am open to it" if it would help the party's prospects in November".

...How selfless and influenza like.

They've all left me

Tess, Grace, and Noah all left together this morning with Theresa's Aunt Joan (the pictured window peeper) at the wheel. In 24-48 hours, they should be safe and sound in Charlotte North Carolina.

I brought Great-Grandma Lisiak successfully to the boarding desk for the Lake Express Ferry to return back to Milwaukee Wisconsin. If anyone in the family wants the update on Great-Grandma L, just ask. I've got the gouge'. Her time at the retirement village where she resides has been pretty busy. Take a number. Her latest accomplishment is man-handling the Nintendo Wii bowling game enough to be chosen to be on a team.

If I can do it justice, she was speaking softly explaining: "Oh, you know.. you just strap that thing to your hand, and swing your arm (like this), release the button, aim, and it goes real well.. I must have been doing pretty good. -I seem to get alot of strikes and spares and such."

A Nintendo Wii !! I don't even know how to play those.. -The next time she comes to Michigan, (after some practice) I'm taking her out to a little "Wii" showdown in our church's youth room..

Well, the house is dreadfully quiet now. I'd better grab some quick ZZzzs' before I go into Fictionville E.R. tonight.

Family, please enjoy safe and fun travels. I look forward to your call later tonight. ..By the way, I realized what my problem might be on the back of a sailboat I had seen in Muskegon this afternoon:

Be safe,

-C

Noah Paul

"Go on... I'm intently listening. -So you're seriously talking about putting that water on me ?!?!
-You know; I'm only six months old right ? (and my daddy's probably going to post this on our web-log).."



Yes Noah.. You are right. I am going to post this on our web-log.

Today was absolutely perfect. The sunrise, the fellowship, your christening... and we only had one 'small' fire to be concerned about at your open house. Uncle Rob (Lisiak) was not only the "Grill Master" (of which we can't thank-you enough Rob. -It was fantastic!), But also a calm voice of reason when the grill began to catch fire after grilling 40+ burgers and brats.

We enjoyed a wonderful feast with some great friends and family... Not just from around here; but family traveled from as far away as Wisconsin, and even South Carolina to enjoy the weekend with us. Thank-you!



Propane tanks and a fire extinguisher. Not the typical partnership. -The grill was 'put out to pasture', to cool off (..and burn itself out) just in time.

For the rest of the *exciting* pictures of the day', just click here.

Tess, Grace, and Noah, will be driving to Charlotte, North Carolina tomorrow with Tess' Aunt Joan Monday morning. Please pray for safety and entertainment during their journey and stay. I'll be joining them by flight sometime next week after my workweek ends. -Joan. Thanks for all of your help this past week. You've been awesome. I hope you enjoyed your stay at the "HILTON" of A-town, or what might be better known as, the 'Guest lodge of "HiltonLife".'

-C